Materials and methods for building walls or barriers for soil, sand, rock, noise, and/or water retention are well known. In walls that are built largely without mortar to connect the blocks, retaining walls are generally comprised of specialized blocks having unusual shapes. Specialized connectors between blocks may also be necessary. For example, see U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,417,523; 5,350,256; 5,282,700; and 4,990,032 for blocks and connectors having grooves, keys, or bars for creating dovetail joints or other means for connecting the blocks together into a wall structure. Some devices and methods for building walls require complex interconnection, as in U.S. Pat. No. 5,403,127.
In many prior art wall systems, gravity retaining walls are made using specially cast concrete blocks. These blocks are of special design or shape and usually only serve one function, namely being used in the special wall systems for which they are designed. Often in these systems, the blocks are intended for all wall applications, low height walls, i.e. three feet high, as well as high walls, i.e. twenty feet high. A problem with this approach is that each block must be designed to withstand the loading of the highest walls. Designing one block or a special system for all loads or conditions is not an economical solution. This approach requires special manufacturing, stocking and shipping. What is needed is a method for quickly building an earth-retaining barrier with simple interconnections and materials. It is a further object of the present invention to provide a device which is inexpensive to manufacture and to store, and which, in combination with easily available materials, may be utilized in an earth-retaining barrier.